EFCC recovers N83.59bn, $98.07m NDDC levies from oil firms

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it has recovered N83.59 billion and $98.07 million in outstanding three per cent statutory levies owed to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) by oil companies.

The commission disclosed this on Wednesday when Francis Usani, its Special Adviser on Regulatory Compliance, appeared before the Senate Committee on Public Accounts.

The committee, chaired by Ibrahim Dankwambo, is investigating findings contained in the 2021–2023 Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) oil and gas industry audit report, particularly outstanding statutory obligations by companies operating in the extractive sector.

According to the EFCC’s investigation report, the NEITI audit identified N90.046 billion and $229.534 million in unpaid three per cent NDDC levies covering the period from 2015 to 2020.

Usani said the EFCC invited 43 oil companies following the findings and established that 24 companies operating in the Niger Delta had outstanding liabilities.

He said the remaining 19 companies were found to have no outstanding liabilities and were subsequently cleared.

“The EFCC recovered N76.884 billion and $81.077 million directly from the 24 companies, with the money paid into its recovery account domiciled with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),” he said.

According to him, the commission subsequently remitted N73.373 billion and $67.071 million to the NDDC.

As of July 31, Usani said N3.510 billion and $14.006 million remained in the EFCC’s recovery account.

Firms paid additional N6.7bn, $17m directly to NDDC

The EFCC also told the committee that some oil companies paid an additional N6.710 billion and $16.994 million directly into the NDDC’s revenue account following its intervention.

Usani said the payments were made at the instance of the EFCC, with the affected companies submitting receipts to the commission for verification.

When the direct recoveries made by the EFCC are combined with the payments made directly to the NDDC, the total amount recovered stands at approximately N83.59 billion and $98.07 million.

Usani said the commission’s investigation focused primarily on the unpaid three per cent statutory levy identified by NEITI as being due to the NDDC.

He, however, noted that the EFCC was also examining the possibility of other unpaid statutory obligations and taxes owed to the Federal Government.

“The EFCC focused on one primary pillar identified in the NEITI report, which is unpaid three per cent statutory levies due to NDDC,” he said.

“However, we did not lose sight of the fact that there could be other unpaid statutory obligations and taxes due to the federal government.”

The Senate committee is examining the NEITI 2021–2023 oil and gas sector audit report, with particular attention to allegations of non-remittance and under-remittance of statutory payments by operators in the industry.

The investigation is also expected to determine the level of compliance by oil companies with their financial obligations to the NDDC and other government agencies and identify possible revenue leakages in the sector.